Hello Hacksaw,
I too have welded a few different things. One of the things that I have encountered often is a variation in individual companies sharing of information with welders. Sometimes they allow us just to "weld along" and other times they are micro managing different details. And sometimes they provide information to us with an understanding that we actually read some of the stuff that was in our 11th grade welding textbooks.
As a welder with some experience in the QC side of things, I think that the procedures, specifications, and quality control are all part of a companies desire to either
(1) Comply with a jusridictional, customer supplied, or engineered requirement or
(2) Do the previous AND constantly improve the quality and reliability of what is welded.
I have seen a many field combo welders swear up and down that FCAW will never work on ductwork and seen 1st year apprentices with a background in a fab shop smoke em out of a duct welding 4 to 1 the length of weld. The technology for welding is improving every day. Those that embrace the technology and experiment with it to see what works and what doesn't work will lead their industry.
The transfer modes are a basic part of the knowledge of a process. Not only are the modes different, they also affect the ranges of qualification for a welder performance qualification and welding procedure qualification for many codes and standards. Here is an article from the NBIC (The organization responsible for the code that you have worked under many times if doing any boiler or pressure vessel repairs).
http://www.nationalboard.org/Index.aspx?pageID=179 Many of the process variables that are contained within a welding procedure fall within a useable range. It is often the job of the welder to apply the "feel" to get everything going right for that specific joint. However that does not mean the details in the procedure are of no value. The ranges are there for a reason. I do know that many times, you and I never see the WPS until the day the 3rd party or custiomer inspector comes.
Almost all of the variables on a welding procedure can affect the weld in some way. Transfer mode, which is related to Voltage, Wire Feed, Electrical Stickout, shielding gas etc, is a very important part of GMAW and has been for years. Its not something new. Or at least not to me. However I have had very few employers bring it up to me in the shop or field. They did often give me a WPS which did refer to it.
When I am on the QC side of things working within the requirements of a code, you can be sure I am checking the variables as related to GMAW. I am pretty sure there is a power company engineer up north that was not happy with me for bringing up the fact that he approved a GMAW Short Circuit Transfer WPS written for 3/8" thick material in 1 1/8" wall pipe. And the welders had only tested on 3/8" plate.
Anyway. Hope some of the info helps. Understand that many of the experience people have can vary widely from yours. Even within different companies working within the same industries, I have see wide ranges of how welding is controlled. In my current job as a maint welder on piping machinery and tanks at a paper mill, my only requirement is to "fix it". I use some of that stuff I learned in the 11th grade when it gets outside the scope of 70SX, 6010, and 7018. But I also read TAPPI, NBIC, and ASME articles whenever possible.
Have a nice day
Gerald Austin
weldingclassroom.org
course.weldingclassroom.org